Vermont phÅ“nix. [volume] (Brattleboro, Vt.) 1834-1955, 1887-09-02
The south American yankee.

The Chillano is the Yankee Of South Amer
lea the most active, enterprising, ingenious
and thrifty Of the Spanish American race,
aggressive, audacious and arrogant, quick
TO perceive, quick TO resent. fierce in dispO-
sition, cold -blooded, and cruel as a canni-
bal. He dreams Of conquest. lie has only
a strip Of country along the Pacific coast,
80 narrow that there is scarcely room enough
TO write its name upon the map, hemmed in
on the one side by the eternal SHOWS that
crown the Cordilleras, and on the other by
5000 miles Of sea. He has been stretching
himself northward until he has stolen all
the sea coast of Bolivia, with her valuable
nitrate deposits all the guano that belonged
TO Peru, and contemplates taking actual
possession of both those republics soon.
He has been reaching southwark by diplo-
macy as he did northward by war, and un-
der a recent treaty with the Argentine Re
public divided Patagonia with that nation,
taking to himself the control of that valua-
ble international highway, the Strait of
Magellan, the unexplored country between
the Andes and the ocean, and thousands Of
islands along the Pacific coast whose re
sources are unknown. BY securing the
strait, Chill acquired control of steam nav
igation in the South Pacific, and has estab
lished a colony and fortress at Punta Are
mas, by which all vessels must pass Re
posing TRANQUILITY now in the enjoyment Of
newly-acquired territory along the Bolivian
and Peruvian border, and deriving an enor-
nous revenue from the export tax upon nj
trate, the Chillano contemplates the inter
nal dissensions of Peru, and waits anxious
| ly the time when he can step in as arbitra-
tor, and, like the lawyer, take the estate
that the heirs are silly enough TO quarrel
| over. 1t is but question of years when
not only Peru, but Bolivia, will become a
part Of Chill, and the aggressive nation will
want TO push her eastern boundary back of
the Andes, and secure control of the sourc-
es of the Amazon, as she has of the navi-
cation Of the strait.
The Chillanos lead the southern continent
and are the most powerful of all the Amer
lean republics except our own. Their
statesmen are wise and able, their people
are industrious and progressive, and have
that strength of mind and muscle which is
given only to the men of temperate zones.
There is a strong similarity between the
| Chillanos and the Irish. Both have the
same wit and reckless courage the same
love Of country and patriotic pride. Wher
ever a Chillano goes he carries his opinion
that there never was and never can be a
better land than that in which he was born /;
and although he may be refugee or an ex-
| lie, he will fight in defence of Chill at the
drop Of the hat There is something re
freshng in his patriotism, even if it be the
most arrogant vanity There is a law in
the country requiring every house to have n
| flagstaff and every flagstaff to bear the ma
tional colors on a banner by day and a Ian
| tern by night, on the anniversaries of the
republic All the schools must use text
| books by native authors, all the bands play
the compositions of native composers, and
visiting opera and concert singers are com
PEELED to vary their performances by intro
ducing the songs of the country. 1t is said
| that a Frenchman can never be denational
| lied The same is true of the Chillano.
| There has not been successful revolution
| in Chill since 1889, and although there is
nowhere a more unruly and discordant peo-
| pie, nowhere more murders and other seri-
Gus crimes, in their love of country the
naughty Don and the patient peon, the
hunted bandit and the cruel soldier, are
one.
The Chillano soldier is not easily subject
ed to discipline, and outvandals the vandals
in the destruction of property, as the pres
ent condition of Peru will prove. He burns
and destroys everything within his reach
| that has sheltered an enemy. No authority
can restrain his hand The awful scenes of
devastation that took place in Peru have
nothing to parallel them in the annals of
modern warfare. On the battle fields nine
tenths of the dead were found with their
throats cut, and the Chillanos took no pris-
oners except when a whole army capitulat-
ed. They ask no quarter and give none.
| The knowledge of this characteristic and
the fear of the Chillano knife was power
full factor in the subjugation of the more
| humane Peruvians. -Hdrper's Magazine for
| SEPTEMBER